


Unexpected Events

by StarWarsRocksMySocks2



Category: Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: ALSO POSTED ON FF, Angst, Everyone Needs A Hug, F/F, F/M, Mentions of Barriss, PTSD, Prostitution, War, slight AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-02
Updated: 2018-08-26
Packaged: 2019-06-01 13:00:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15143597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarWarsRocksMySocks2/pseuds/StarWarsRocksMySocks2
Summary: A struggling prostitute meets a scarred Jedi. They can't heal on their own, but maybe they can together. Mentions of sexual content.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A/N 1: Obviously, this fic is AU. The war is a lot more severe than portrayed in the movies/series, and it has also gone on for longer. The Jedi and Clones have reached breaking point - there isn't enough money or resources and it's getting harder and harder for all of them.
> 
> A/N 2: In this story Riyo is 21 and Ahsoka is 19.
> 
> A/N 3: Don't ask me where I got the idea for this fic from - I have no idea myself. This fic will mention sexual content but it won't be graphic.
> 
> A/N 4: Most of this story will be from Riyo's POV, since I usually write everything in Ahsoka's POV. I might change it up a little however.
> 
> A/N 5: This was originally going to be a one shot. But the more I thought about it, the more ideas popped into my head so I thought... why not make it a multi chapter.
> 
> A/N 6: I know it was short, but it's only the first chapter. I just wanted to set the tone. I don't usually write stuff like this but I thought I'd give myself a challenge. Hope you enjoyed so far, thoughts and suggestions are appreciated! Thanks a lot, nerds!

I do not own Star Wars, Star Wars the Clone Wars or any of its characters!

Riyo's POV.

It had been a slow day at the brothel. Not that she minded, but less customers meant less money; and money was real hard to come by, these days.

Since the start of the Clone War five years ago, Coruscant had gone into a deep depression. All taxes had been spent on fuelling the goddamn war. The longer the war raged on, the greater the taxes. Every year, more and more money was demanded from the struggling civilians.

And by the looks of things, the war wasn't going to end anytime soon.

Riyo had worked in the brothel offering her services for just under two years. She had lived a simple life before the war - herself and her parents had lived in a homely apartment on the top level of Coruscant. Her parents had been members of the Senate - however, just year into the war, they had been assassinated by the Separatists. The culprit was never caught.

Without a family and without a job - she was too young to work, the legal working age being eighteen standard years on Coruscant - her parents inheritance money had quickly run out while paying rent, bills and providing for herself. It had lasted until just a little after she turned eighteen. She wasn't put into care due to being over the age of sixteen. You needed to be eighteen to be able to work legally, but 16 to live alone. What a bunch of poodoo.

That's when she stumbled across this old place; a small, off the radar brothel on one of the lower levels on Coruscant. Since the war started, more and more brothels uncovered themselves. They'd always been there, hidden. But the war was so severe at that point, even only a few years in - the Government couldn't really do anything, as they were so focussed on the war.

She'd been there ever since.

It was incredibly scary the first few times she'd slept with men. She knew that she was putting herself at risk of contracting STI's, but she had no other way to make money. She had been at an All Time Low. Eventually, she had paid for an injection that helped to protect her from such infections.

The brothel itself was actually quite clean. Sure the furniture was a little dusty and outdated, but the building was clean and suitable for the workers there.

It wasn't uncommon for soldiers who fought in the war to stop by. In fact, it was becoming more and more frequent for clones to stop by, to release the pent up stress and emotions

Riyo felt for them, she really did. They put their life on the line almost every day so that they could one day maybe live in peace again. Not only that, they were bred to fight the war. They had no choice of their path; it was already set for them.

Since the start of the war, Riyo had soon come to realise that the Jedi were not what they once were. They were no longer peace keepers; just more soldiers who threw themselves into battle, trying to change the Universe for the good.

She didn't hate the Jedi and army like so many did.

Offering her services to Clones had meant that she got time to actually understand the situation better and got to know them. A lot of Clones were so affected by the war, they just needed to release the stress and tension in their bodies, and Riyo was happy to help the people who were fighting for the planet.

It didn't mean she particularly enjoyed her job. She didn't. But she knew she was somewhat helping the soldiers, and that they appreciated her service, like she appreciated theirs.

The soldiers, despite being so hardened and even damaged by the war, were always more caring and considerate. They were never rough with her - Riyo just expected that they just wanted to feel something that wasn't pain or despair.

Unfortunately, the same couldn't be said for some of her other clients. Often drunken, old men just wanting to control and humiliate her. Riyo hated it - but she had no other choice. This was her job. The pay was decent and it was a little more than enough for her to get by. Finding a real job these days was almost impossible. Employers had to take on the bare minimum for staff and wages, since Coruscant's government was so corrupt. The economy was falling. Children lay homeless on the streets, women would practically beg people on the streets to use them, just to get enough money to feed themselves and their families for a few days.

The war was ruining everything, but she couldn't do anything about it. It was all down to the Republic Army to fight, and they were doing their best, no matter what anyone said.

There were those who hated the Army, believing that their taxes were being wasted on Clones and the 'thieving Jedi' who got to 'laze around in a cozy temple all day'.

But Riyo knew different. She'd interacted with so many soldiers - she knew they were trying - trying their hardest to change things.

She'd interacted with a handful of both clones. Sometimes it wasn't even sexual, they just wanted to talk and truly get their emotions out, since they couldn't do that around their hardened companions.

Some were frequent visitors and Riyo would get to know them enough to tell them apart from their identical brothers. She'd realised that despite being identical clones of one another, they were definitely in fact not the same. From their personalities, their specific professions and roles within the war and even their appearance; they were not the same.

Riyo sighed and rubbed her eyes, being careful not to smudge the light mascara that lengthened her eye lashes. All this thought on the war was giving her a headache.

Trying to pass the time while she waited for a client, she reached into her credits pouch and counted her earnings from the the day. Not quite satisfied, she recounted it, in case she'd made a mistake.

Sighing again when she realised that she had been right the first time, she tucked the pouch away again. Rent was coming up soon and it wasn't looking great. She'd had plenty of clients over the past month but many had been sleezballs who had underpaid her, telling her they'd give it to her next time. When next time rolled around, they still didn't repay what they owed.

Usually, if Riyo had money to spare, she would catch a taxi ride home. However, since she was a little short this month, she assumed she'd be walking home.

Just the thought of walking home by herself sent a shiver up her spine. Since the start of the war, crime had increased tenfold. Gun crime, knife crime and theft had increased by over sixty percent since the first year of the war.

Riyo was lucky enough that she'd never been put into one of those situations, but it didn't mean that it couldn't happen. The thought of walking home alone scared her to death.

Lost in thought, Riyo barely registered the door opening and a figure stepping inside. She quickly sat up straight and checked that her credit pouch was tucked securely into her pocket. The others who worked in the brothel also looked towards the door, where a hooded figure walked up to the counter.

She watched as the figure stood at the counter, speaking with the receptionist, the brown cloak masking their features.

Riyo observed the ominous figure from her position on the dusty couch, which was up against the wall adjacent wall, giving Riyo a view of the figure's side.

The rusty brown cloak stopped at the figures knees, meaning Riyo could only see the figures legs below the knees, since the cloak was so oversized. She could tell that this person was either Twi'lek or Togruta, due to the odd shape of the hood.

Her eyes skimmed over the person's legs again, observing the worn, red combat boots. Raising a brow, Riyo was almost sure that this person was female.

It surprised her a little, though she didn't know why. It wasn't unknown for females to come to brothels - she'd even had a few female clients herself.

She wondered why this woman was wearing such a concealing cloak, however. Maybe this was her first time coming to a place like this and she was shy, maybe a little embarrassed?

Just as the thought crossed her mind, the woman pulled down the hood that concealed her face. Riyo almost gasped, managing to stop herself before she opened her mouth.

The girl was Togruta, young, probably late teens possibly early twenties. She suspected she was in the late teens but the girl could just look younger than she actually was. But she was sure she'd seen her before. Not positive, but she recognised the face - she just couldn't remember where from. Maybe she'd seen her around the streets a few times or they'd been in the same grocery store.

She had orange skin that reminded her of the tatooine sun - she'd never been there but she'd seen it in movies when she was younger - white markings that framed her face and blue eyes that matched the colour of her own skin.

Riyo watched as the receptionist tapped on the datapad and the girl stood there patiently.

She seemed nice enough, she guessed. She hadn't met the girl but she was patient, and she didn't reek of alcohol like a lot of the clients did. Sometimes she could smell it even before they reached the counter.

Riyo perked up suddenly when Braana called her name, "Riyo, you're up."


	2. Chapter 2

Riyo flopped down onto her bed, sighing as she hit the sheets. Face shoved into her pillow, she thought hard about her day.

Or more specifically, a few hours ago.

That Togruta girl was... something else. She didn't even know how to explain it. It wasn't strange... well it was, but not weird. Like a nice strange? Or an unexpected strange... Shit, she didn't know how to word it. Just... strange.

When Riyo had asked what the Togruta wanted, she didn't give a specific answer. Just a small, "I don't mind. Standard, whatever. I've never really done anything like this before. Just anything."

Confused, but slightly, weirdly intrigued with the girl, she stepped closer and pulled the girls cloak over her head. The girl just let her do it, without any kind of protest or hesitation. Riyo had thought that she seemed lost and unemotional - numb.

Riyo had removed the tights that hugged her legs, both of them silent. When Riyo tried to remove the woman's shirt, which had been a grey, plain, slightly oversized t-shirt, the woman had stopped her and shook her head silently.

A little confused, Riyo had then gently the pushed the girl down onto freshly made bed and began to remove her own clothes. As her hands gripped the bottom of her shirt to pull it over her head, the orange skinned woman placed a gentle, slightly calloused hand on her forearm. She had spoken quietly, "You don't have to do that. I know you're probably uncomfortable with doing this with random strangers, I don't expect you to do anything out of your comfort zone. Leave them on, if you feel more comfortable."

Riyo had paused for a moment, releasing the grip on the shirt. "Okay." She breathed, laying herself down next to the girl. Had Riyo made it that obvious that she hated undressing in front of others, even if it was her profession? Maybe this Togruta was just good at reading people.

Riyo was slightly stuck on what she should do next. Clients usually made the first move and instructed her with what they wanted. The girl next to her seemed to be waiting for her to make the move.

Riyo leant forward, propped up on her elbow, to press a kiss to the girl's lips.

The girl's jaw visibly clenched and she moved her head to the side, silently avoiding Riyo's lips.

Slightly confused, Riyo followed her instincts and instead pressed a kiss to the girl's neck. She didn't get much of a reaction, apart from a shaky breath from the Togruta.

Slightly nervous for reasons she didn't know, Riyo's kisses descended down towards the girl's chest, pulling the collar of her shirt to the side for a little more room. She pulled it down further and continued her descent, her destination obvious, but she was startled slightly when the girl stopped her and placed a hand under her chin, pulling her face up so they were eve level with each other. "Hey, remember what I said. Don't do anything out of your comfort zone."

Again, she breathed a small, "Okay." And her hand skimmed lower, reaching waistband of her underwear.

The girl had been quiet. She hadn't moaned once during the favour, but she hadn't been completely silent either.

Riyo had noticed that her jaw often clenched, as if holding back from making noise.

She'd let out small grunts and pants here and there, but never moaned or expressed the pleasure through noise.

She'd gripped the back of Riyo's shirt in her fist and clenched her jaw when she'd reached her peak, releasing a long, shaky breath though her nose.

They'd lay there for a very brief moment, just looking at each other, Riyo's hand tracing small shapes and random patterns over the girls concealed stomach while her body calmed down from it's high. It had been an intense sight - the Togruta must have had a lot of pent up tension inside.

Riyo could feel the tension of the girl's body beneath her fingertips. It didn't ease.

She'd stood up then, retrieving the girl's tights and giving them to her.

The Togruta sat up and swung her legs over the bed, sitting on the edge. She'd reached inside her cloak that had been discarded on the floor.

"Here," She said quietly, offering a large handful of credits to Riyo.

Riyo took them and did a quick sum in her head. "No," she said, passing back a little over half of the credits, "I can't take all of this. It's too much."

The girl's pushed Riyo's hand back towards her, her eyes shining, "No... You take them. You need them more than I do."

Riyo's eyes skimmed over the money again, "But this over half the charge..."

The Togruta stood and placed her calloused hand over Riyo's, "Please, take them."

Riyo hadn't known what to say or do in that situation. She uttered a small, "Thank you."

But when she looked up, the girl was slipping out through the door, the hood of her cloak once again hiding her features.

Riyo dug her face deeper into her pillow. That woman had been so confusing; as well as kind, caring and even considerate. She had been so strange and it made Riyo crazy. She had a kind heart; so what was she doing in a brothel? The girl was nice enough and attractive enough to get a partner, surely?

Riyo thought back again. The Togruta was tense, even before they had got on the bed; that much was obvious. She had hard eyes and refused to kiss Riyo. She hadn't moaned, only breathed heavily and clenched her jaw, as if holding herself back.

Riyo shook her head. Maybe she just wasn't a moaner? Was she thinking too deep into this?

Why did she even care? After all, it was her job to please others by doing sexual favours. The girl had just come in, wanting to get off; that was all there was to it, right? No strings attached.

So why could she not stop thinking about it? About her?

Nothing seemed to add up to her. For starters, the girl was definitely no older than twenty-two, that she was sure of. What kind of woman that age comes to a brothel for stress relief? And what kind of woman acts the way she had? So delicate and considerate, yet so hard and emotionless.

Riyo's brain seemed to exhaust itself, and she soon slipped into a deep sleep.

...

The next week and half had dragged by slowly.

The money the Togruta had given her had helped her pay the months rent, even leaving her with enough left over for a taxi ride home that night.

The girl's kindness could have saved her life that night. The morning after meeting the mysterious Togruta, it had been reported on the radio that a young Rodian had been attacked just a couple of streets down from the brothel, at an estimated time of 3:30am, which was half an hour after she finished her shift at work.

Riyo stepped out of the shower, quickly dressing and preparing herself for the rest of her shift. She always tried to shower after each client, always feeling dirty and violated when they left.

The man she'd been with had been awful. Drunk and reeking of cigarettes, he had been very forceful, rough and clumsy with her small, fragile body. She could already feel the bruises forming on her hips where he'd roughly grabbed her.

The warm water had helped soothe the dull throbbing in her hips, legs and private areas. Riyo always appreciated a hot shower, feeling like it was the best way to unwind.

When she emerged from the bathroom and stepped into the reception area, she was startled to see that familiar Togruta sat on one of the sofas.

She was sat with her elbows on her knees, her hands fumbling together. Her eyes were focused on her hands and she was seemingly lost in thought.

Riyo was shocked to see her back. She observed her like she had done before, eyes swooping over her facial features, her hands, her eyes.

The girl seemed to sense that she was being watched and raised her head, locking her blue eyes with Riyo's golden ones.

"Are you here to see me again?" Riyo questioned, an odd nervous feeling settling in her stomach, making her uneasy. Not a bad kind of nervous, more like an unsure kind. At least she knew that she wouldn't get violated by some scummy bastard.

The girl was staring at her fidgeting fingers again when she replied, "Um, yes. If that's okay with you, of course." She mumbled, still looking downwards.

Riyo frowned slightly and walked towards her. "Of course it is. Come on."

She slipped her delicate hand into the one of the girl's fidgeting ones. Riyo felt the girl almost jerk away from the gesture, but she relaxed a moment later.

The Togruta had nice hands, Riyo caught herself thinking. Wait, why was she even thinking about that?

She lead the girl into the same room that they'd used before. Riyo felt as if, even though they'd only knew each other because of a brief encounter, that she'd known the girl for longer; despite not even knowing her name, her age, or even anything about her.

Ahsoka sat down the side of bed and looked up towards Riyo. "Um, I didn't thank you after last time." She said a little awkwardly, her hands fingers fumbling again.

Riyo frowned at her. "You came back here to tell me that?"

Riyo watched the familiar clenching of the girl's jaw. Did she do that when she was thinking? It was kinda cute. Ugh, her brain needed to stop wandering off topic.

"Well, no. But I just remembered. I like to be polite." She replied a little awkwardly.

Riyo smiled, "You don't need to thank me. Those credits you gave me saved me and my apartment. If it hadn't been for you I wouldn't have been able to pay my rent. I should be thanking you."

The Togruta smiled for a split second before speaking, "I didn't catch your name last time, but I think I heard someone say it. Riyo, is it?"

She nodded. "And I didn't catch yours, either?"

She watched Ahsoka do the jaw thing again and tried not to think about how cute it was was. "Ahsoka." She replied quietly after a moment.

Riyo was about to reply when she noticed a white bandage on Ahsoka's forearm, almost fully concealed by her cloak.

"Is your arm okay, Ahsoka?" Hm, her name rolled off the tongue nicely.

The Togruta, Ahsoka, glanced down at her arm and pulled the cloak sleeve over it again, "Yeah. Caught it on some scrap metal while repairing a ship, that's all. It was nothing too serious." She mumbled in reply.

Riyo nodded, indicating that she had heard her. "So, what can I do for you today? The same?" Riyo said, trying to make herself sound more confident than she felt. It had been easier when Ahsoka was more quiet. She wasn't great at this small talk business, and by the looks of things, neither was Ahsoka. It wasn't incredibly awkward, however. Not awkward at all, actually.

"Yeah... If that's okay." Ahsoka said, a little shyly, not knowing what to say.

Riyo just pushed her down onto the bed.

Fifteen minutes later, Ahsoka was offering a sum of credits to Riyo. Once again, she had given more than she needed to.

Before Riyo could protest, Ahsoka stopped her, a smile on her lips that didn't reach her eyes, "Riyo, just take them."

Riyo tucked the credits into her pouch, "Thank you. You're too kind, Ahsoka." She said genuinely, thankful for her compassion.

...

A few weeks had passed. Ahsoka continued to visit, and Riyo strangely enjoyed her company. It was kind of fucked, in a way. Riyo was a prostitute, she shouldn't enjoy the company of her clients; but Ahsoka was so different to everyone else, even if she had only spoken to her a total of four times.

Every time, Ahsoka always gave her more credits than she needed to. And every time, Riyo offered to return some of the credits but Ahsoka insisted that she keep them.

With each moment they spent with each other, Ahsoka came out of her shell more and more. She was still quiet and didn't speak much, but every time they encountered each other they would talk for a few minutes, asking how each other's day was.

Riyo avoided telling Ahsoka about her experiences with other clients, as they were not at all pleasant. It made her queasy to think about them.

When Riyo would ask how Ahsoka's day had been, she would usually reply with 'fine' or go into very little detail about the day. Usually she told Riyo that she'd fixed a few ships here and there or that she hadn't been busy.

The Pantoran assumed that Ahsoka was a mechanic.

Nothing she thought of could explain Ahsoka's demeanour, however. She just seemed emotionless; and that confused Riyo, even angered her a little. Why did this girl act how she did? This girl was an anomaly to her.

Had something bad happened to her to make her that way? Had she lost family to the war, just like Riyo had?

Her mysteriousness just drew Riyo to her, and Riyo had no idea how to feel about that.

As expected, Ahsoka had arrived in the early hours of the morning, around 2am, like usual.

She was always dressed in the same swooping cloak.

The door closed behind the two women and Riyo, knowing what to do, stepped closer and pulled the cloak over Ahsoka's head.

She gave the Togruta a concerned look when she noticed a bandage peeking out from the sleeve of Ahsoka's t shirt. "Scrap metal?" Riyo questioned, running her fingertips over the bandage. She was surprised when Ahsoka let her touch her like that. Usually Ahsoka just came for the sex, and wouldn't let Riyo kiss her or touch her for too long.

Ahsoka looked down at Riyo's hand, but didn't make an effort to move it; which made Riyo smile internally. "Not this time." Ahsoka replied, "I had an accident while running."

"Running?" Riyo questioned.

Ahsoka nodded, pulling up the sleeve of the black t-shirt and exposing the full length of the bandage. "I'm quite athletic. I do a lot of gymnastics and free running. You know, parkour and all that."

"It's a big bandage, what happened?" Riyo skimmed her fingers over the material again, trailing her fingertips from the top of the bandage and down the exposed orange skin. Her fingers stopped when they reached the soft inside of Ahsoka's wrist.

Riyo was testing the waters - Ahsoka was being more allowing when it came to Riyo touching her, which was unusual.

Riyo decided she liked the feeling of Ahsoka's skin.

Ahsoka paused for a few moments before replying, trying to find a way to form her words, "I just landed a little awkward, that's all." She said a little too quickly. "I misjudged the jumping distance and rolled to the floor so I didn't injure my legs; instead I fell straight on my arm. It's just badly bruised with a few cuts and scrapes. The med droids suggested putting a bacta-laced bandage around it."

Riyo removed her hand from the dressing, trying to piece together Ahsoka's not so convincing story. "I thought those types of bandages were only used for blaster wounds and burns?"

Ahsoka locked eyes with her for a small moment and then broke eye contact, "It's just what the droid said, I don't know about medical kits and first aid." She said bluntly, pulling the sleeve back over her upper arm.

Riyo chuckled a little, amused.

"What's so funny?" Ahsoka asked, a little peeved that Riyo was laughing at her.

Riyo shook her head, "Nothing. It's just you've spoken to me more in the past five minutes than all the times we've seen each combined."

Riyo saw her clamping her jaw again, standing in front of her, silent once again. It took a few moments for her to respond, "I'm sorry if I made you feel... uncomfortable. I'm just... not used to this kind of interaction." She said apologetically.

Riyo smiled, placing a delicate hand on Ahsoka's chest. She did it slowly enough that Ahsoka could pull away, if she wanted to. She sensed that there was a lot she didn't know about the mysterious Togruta. She had a feeling that this girl was somehow, for whatever reason, damaged and wasn't fond of physical interaction.

Ahsoka had let her place her hand over her chest, just above her heart. Riyo spoke quietly, offering comfort, "You don't make me feel uncomfortable. Trust me, you're the nicest person who comes here. You don't demand anything from me. You're calm and considerate, unlike most of the people who come here."

Ahsoka glanced down at the hand on her chest and gently removed it, placing Riyo's hand back at her side. "You wouldn't say that if you knew me personally."

Riyo bit the inside of her cheek, concerned about Ahsoka's sudden change in tone. "And why is that? You've shown nothing but kindness to me. You always give me extra credits even when you know it's too much. You're consider how I'm feeling. How does that make you a bad person?"

Ahsoka shook her head, the muscles in her jaw pulsing as she clenched and released her facial muscles. "Just forget I said anything. I'm being ridiculous."

"You aren't." Riyo stated.

Ahsoka looked at her with emotion swimming in her shining eyes, "Please, Riyo. Just forgot I said anything."

Riyo sighed. "Okay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter two, donneeee.
> 
> A/N 1: I know Ahsoka is way out of character in this fic. Like I said, the war has been going on for years, and Ahsoka has been affected quite badly by it.
> 
> A/N 2: Things will pick up and get more interesting soon. I'm slowly building a relationship between Riyo and Ahsoka. Ahsoka is quite distrustful, and self conscious for reasons explained in further detail later in the story.
> 
> A/N 3: It's hard to write Ahsoka like this because it's so out of character for her. But I'm doing my best!
> 
> A/N 4: Thanks for reading, nerds! As usual, comments and reviews are appreciated!


	3. Chapter 3

Riyo wiped the tears from under her eyes, her dark mascara smudging across her cheeks.

"Great." The Pantoran mumbled to herself, trying to dab away the black smudges on her cheeks.

With shaky hands, Riyo swiped the rest of the blackness away and started to reapply a fresh layer of mascara onto her eyelashes. She had to be ready for the next client.

Eyes still slightly puffy, Riyo quietly slid out of the bathroom and into the main reception area.

She gasped quietly when Ahsoka, who she hadn't been expecting, swooped past her, grabbing her hand and quickly pulling her into their usual room.

"You've been crying." Ahsoka stated, concerned eyes looking down at the shorter woman.

Riyo didn't bother to deny the accusation. "It's nothing, Ahsoka. I didn't have a very nice experience with a client, that's all." She replied quietly, dabbing her fingers underneath her eyes to check for any mascara flakes.

"That's not nothing. Where is he now?" Ahsoka demanded, her usually quiet demeanour replaced by something Riyo couldn't recognise from Ahsoka.

Riyo could feel the tears well in her eyes again, though she was unsure why. "He's gone, he left almost an hour ago." She said, her eyes watery. The Pantoran dabbed at her eyes gently, gathering the salty moisture onto her fingertips so they wouldn't ruin her make up - again.

Riyo saw a spark in Ahsoka's eyes that she hadn't seen before. "What did he do to you?" Ahsoka said in a stern tone, however not as demanding as her tone had been previously.

The smaller woman sniffed and sat on the edge of the bed, leaving Ahsoka still standing. "He was forceful... it was awful. He used me and didn't even pay half of the credits." Riyo said sadly, embarrassment flooding through her. She must've sounded pathetic, complaining about not getting paid correctly when all she was was some prostitute.

Ahsoka seemed to sense Riyo's humiliation and she sat beside her, awkwardly wrapping her arm around Riyo's trembling shoulders. She wasn't very good at the whole physical human interaction thing. "Did he hurt you?"

Riyo just nodded in reply. She was too distressed to speak, feeling that even if she uttered the tiniest word, she would burst into waterfalls of salty, flowing tears.

Ahsoka placed a gentle hand on Riyo's cheek and guided her face towards her own, so their eyes could meet.

"Hey. Please stop crying. You know I'm too awkward to know what to do." She said gently, earning a tiny chuckle and a few hiccups from Riyo. "I want you to take this."

Riyo watched as the Togruta reached inside her cloak, pulling out a small commlink. She pressed it into Riyo's hand, curling her blue fingers around it securely.

"Next time he comes back, I want you to call me. My contact details are on there already. If he's threatening you in any way, you need to call me." There was a very slight hint of desperation in Ahsoka's voice that made Riyo's heart melt a little. "Okay?"

Riyo nodded and slipped it into her pocket.

Still feeling overwhelmed, Riyo started to wipe at her eyes again. She jerked a little when Ahsoka unexpectedly put her hand on her forearm.

"Can I see?" She asked delicately.

Riyo knew what she meant. She nodded, rising up onto her unsteady feet. Slowly, Riyo pulled her t-shirt over her head.

Riyo had undressed in front of strangers so many times, but this time she felt somewhat nervous. Nonetheless, she still tossed the t-shift onto the bed, leaving her abdomen exposed to the Togruta woman.

Fury flared up in the Togruta upon seeing the dark bruises already forming on Riyo's hips and sides. There was an angry red hand print curled around Riyo's neck and Ahsoka also spotted dark, finger shaped bruises peaking out from Riyo's bra.

Riyo stood nervously as Ahsoka inspected her body. She felt weirdly exposed in front of this girl; however, she knew she was safe with Ahsoka. Ahsoka would never treat her they way she had been previously. She was the most caring and considerate person she'd worked with, even more so than the clones she sometimes had.

For the first time, Riyo saw Ahsoka clenching her jaw muscles in anger. There was a burning emotion in her usually emotionless eyes.

"I'm not going to let him do that to you again." She ground out, fists balled up tightly at her sides.

While Riyo wished that Ahsoka was right, what could she do to stop it all from happening again? Sure, Ahsoka had given her a commlink, but what could Ahsoka do about it?

"Ahsoka," She said defeatedly, feeling like there was no escape from that man, from his rough and wandering hands... She shivered as she recalled what he had done to her. "This is my job... This is what happens. I have no control over it."

"No, Riyo." Ahsoka said firmly, beginning to pace in front of the bed, back and forth. "This may be your job. But it's not right for people to violate and hurt you like that. It's wrong... it's disgusting. You aren't there to be their fucking punch bags."

Riyo had no idea how to feel in this moment. Ahsoka was passionately defending her, and on top of that, she had given her a commlink - not a cheap one either! - so that Riyo could contact her if she was in trouble. This woman was being so incredibly considerate to her and she just didn't know why.

She didn't know how to deal with it or how to say thank you, apart from the one way she knew how.

She knew her head wasn't in the right place but she didn't really care in that moment.

Riyo, still shirtless, moved closer and stood on her toes to press a firm kiss to the taller girl's lips.

One hand on Ahsoka's shoulder, the other resting on her stomach, Riyo felt how tense she was but decided to press another kiss onto Ahsoka's mouth. When she didn't get a reaction - which she hadn't expected from her, anyway, remembering her past experiences with the girl - she then began to pepper kisses on Ahsoka's neck.

"Riyo." Ahsoka said firmly, pushing her back lightly with two hands on her waist. "Stop."

She was an emotional wreck, and she knew it, but it didn't stop Riyo from uttering a watery, "What's wrong? Do you not want me anymore?"

Ahsoka frowned in confusion, "What?"

Riyo ungracefully flopped down onto the bed, head in her hands. The tears were flowing again and it felt like they'd go on for all eternity. Force, the war would be over by the time she managed to get herself together.

Riyo sniffed and spoke between hiccups, "Well that's why you're here isn't it? To get off, let off some steam, right? But now that you've realised I'm such a slut, you don't want me anymore."

Ahsoka clamped her teeth together and thought hard for a short second. She crouched down so that she was just below eye level with Riyo. "Hey," Ahsoka offered, trying to keep her voice quiet and comforting, "That's not what I think of you at all. I want to help you. You're upset and emotionally unstable right now."

Riyo spoke, her head still in her hands, "But you rejected me."

Riyo could hear the familiar sound of grinding teeth before Ahsoka spoke again, her voice even more delicate than before.

"Riyo, I'm not going to take advantage of you while you're in this state. Yes, I did come here to blow off some steam, but when I saw you crying, I knew this was more important. You're very attractive, and really good at what you do..." Where was she even going with this? Words were flowing out, her mouth ignoring her brain that was yelling for them to just wait. "It does not mean that you are any of those things you called yourself. These are dark times, everyone is doing what they can to earn money. I don't think badly of you because of your job, and I never would. You're a lovely girl who doesn't deserve all of this." And with that, Ahsoka's brain caught up with her mouth.

Riyo, sniffing and wiping her eyes, lifted her head to look at Ahsoka, who was still crouched on the floor. Riyo hadn't even noticed Ahsoka's hands that rested lightly on her knees. "Do you really mean all of that?"

"Of course." Ahsoka replied instantly. "Your job doesn't define you as a person."

Riyo seemed to sober up all of her negative emotions then.

Relieved, Ahsoka removed her cloak and wrapped it around Riyo's shoulders. She sat beside her on the bed and rubbed the Pantoran's arm comfortingly. "Want me to stay a while? I may not be the best talker but I'm a good listener." Ahsoka offered gently, hoping Riyo would take up her offer. It wouldn't sit right with Ahsoka if she just left Riyo in this state.

Riyo nodded in reply, wiping under her nose and eyes with a lump of tissue. "I'd like that very much."

Ahsoka smiled and rubbed her shoulder.

...

Ahsoka had comforted her for hours. She'd even walked her home, through the dark streets and back alleys that lead to Riyo's apartment.

"This is it." Riyo stopped outside the large apartment complex.

"Whoa. No wonder your rent is so expensive." Ahsoka said, her eyes skimming over the hundreds of stories and windows.

"Don't remind me." She chuckled. She began to walk towards the apartment entrance but quickly stopped herself, realising that she was still wearing Ahsoka's cloak. She turned on her heel.

"Ahsoka! I've still got your cloak." She yelled.

Ahsoka turned upon hearing Riyo's voice. She winked at the Pantoran, "You keep it. I have plenty more at home."

Riyo stood and watched as Ahsoka began her walk back to - wait, where did Ahsoka even live?

Riyo started back towards her apartment and dug her hand into the cloak when she heard a jingle.

She pulled out a handful of credits and started to laugh to herself out loud, all the negative emotions flushing out of her in that moment. She looked over her shoulder, about to shout over to Ahsoka; however, the Togruta was nowhere to be seen.

Ahsoka always managed to give her extra credits, no matter how much she protested.

Riyo squeezed her hands around sum of credits. "Cheeky fucker." she chuckled, giggling to herself quietly as she made her way up to her apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 1: Sorry if this chapter seems kinda rushed. I wrote it at around 12am when I was running off four hours sleep. On top of that I had done a very long, very busy shift at work. Apologies if it's a little short too.
> 
> A/N 2: Aw the girl's are getting closer. What's next for them?
> 
> A/N 3: As always... please review! Keeps me motivated (seriously).


	4. Chapter 4

Unable to sleep that night, Riyo tossed and turned in her bed. She just couldn't get comfortable, and the temperature seemed to be playing cruel games with her. One moment she was too hot, ten minutes later she was almost shivering.

It wasn't just the physical factors keeping her awake.

Riyo could not keep her mind off that damn Togruta. That anomaly of a girl.

The girl who was quiet and reserved one day, and a completely different person the next.

Ahsoka had been so caring, so compassionate and so soft while she was comforting Riyo. It didn't take by surprise in the moment, since she was such a emotional wreck - but now, Riyo could practically still feel Ahsoka's comforting arm around her shoulders, her sunset hands rubbing her arms.

Ahsoka had been affectionate. It was so strange. The Ahsoka she had been interacting with before yesterday's events had been sensitive to physical contact, barely speaking more than ten words in their whole time together.

Riyo tossed in her bed for what felt like the hundredth time, her eyes slipping shut as she recalled the earlier events.

...Flashback...

"I'm sorry to put you in a situation where you aren't comfortable." Riyo uttered, pulling her legs up and crossing them underneath her.

Ahsoka mimicked her and played with her bed sheets that lay beneath them, sat opposite Riyo. "I'm not. I'm just a little awkward with words and expressing emotions. Don't worry about it."

Riyo bit the inside of her cheek, "And I'm sorry for coming onto you like that... I just thought... Well I didn't, I wasn't thinking, I just thought-"

Ahsoka cut off Riyo's ramble by placing a hand on her knee. "Hey, it doesn't matter. You didn't disrespect me in any way or offend me. So stop dwelling on it. I mean don't get me wrong, you're really attractive, but there was no way I was going to take advantage of you while you were vulnerable. I'm not like like that."

"I know aren't." She said knowingly.

Ahsoka scratched the back of her head and offered an awkward smile, "So... Do you, uh, watch tv?"

Riyo giggled at Ahsoka's pathetic attempt to make the conversation more lighthearted. She really needed to work on those all important social skills.

"Sometimes. I like crime tv shows and some comedy." Came Riyo's reply. "What about you?"

"Me? I don't really watch much tv. The news maybe, here and there. I prefer to do physical activity, you know, exercise and sport, that kinda stuff. Guess you could call me boring." Ahsoka shrugged.

Riyo couldn't help but think that Ahsoka was avoiding the truth. She wasn't lying, but she avoiding mentioning certain things. Riyo put it down to her quiet and reserved demeanour. Still, it seemed off.

"Not boring." Riyo mused, "Its good to keep active, I guess."

"Yeah." Ahsoka paused for a few long seconds, before fumbling over her words. "You know... if you needed, or, errr, wanted me to, I could teach you how to defend yourself."

When Riyo didn't reply straight away, Ahsoka started to completely crash and fall over her words, "Because, it's uh, dangerous walking home by yourself. And you get some pretty violent clients, I uh, don't want you to get hurt."

"Ahsoka stop rambling on." She smiled warmly, "I'd like that. Where did you learn about self defence?"

"My... older brother taught me. I'd be happy to teach you, if it makes you feel safer." Ahsoka said, her voice becoming a little louder as she spoke.

"I'd like that, Ahsoka."

They continued to talk for hours after that.

...Flashback end...

Ahsoka hadn't revealed too much about herself in their last meeting, so Riyo actually had no idea what Ahsoka could be doing.

They'd mainly spoken about herself for the majority of the conversation. What Riyo enjoyed, what she did in her spare time, her favourite food and television shows.

Ahsoka had mentioned her older brother a couple times - never his name though. Riyo wondered if her brother knew that Ahsoka came to the brothel.

She mentally slapped herself, what was she thinking? Of course her brother didn't know. What kind of older brother would allow their younger sibling to go to a place like that?

A few days passed after that and once again, Ahsoka showed up in the early hours of the morning, like usual.

Once they had gotten a room, Riyo perched herself on the side of the bed.

"Back again?" Riyo said in a teasing manner.

A slight smile appeared on Ahsoka's face, "Yeah."

"The usual?"

Ahsoka smiled sheepishly at her.

Riyo rolled her eyes playfully and guided Ahsoka to the bed.

As she started to work on Ahsoka's neck, pressing kisses and roaming her hands over Ahsoka's thigh, a thought popped into Riyo's head. Ahsoka didn't seem as emotionless as usually did, and she was even letting Riyo touch her. They'd even had a tiny bit of friendly banter. Ahsoka was warming up to her, and that made her feel good.

It was a nice change, Riyo decided. She liked it.

Riyo shifted her position a little, leaning a bit of weight onto Ahsoka's shoulder as she leant up to press a kiss to Ahsoka's jaw.

Riyo pulled away when Ahsoka let out a small hiss of pain. "Is everything okay?" She asked timidly, wondering if she'd done something wrong.

Ahsoka shook her head and rolled her shoulder around, "Yeah, I'm fine. I've just been having some shoulder and back pains recently." She rolled her shoulder again and made a face that indicated it was painful. "I've been skipping out on the sports massages." She said, chuckling at her small joke.

Riyo pulled away. "I could give you one if you wanted?"

Ahsoka propped herself up on her elbows, "You don't have to do that."

Riyo rolled her eyes playfully, "I'll do it for a bit of extra cash." She winked, indicating that she was kidding.

Ahsoka smiled at her, "Don't I always give you extra anyway?"

Riyo ignored her. "Take off your shirt then."

"Can't you do it with my shirt on?" Ahsoka asked.

Slightly confused, Riyo replied, "I can... but it won't feel as good and it would make it a little easier for me." Riyo studied the conflicted look on Ahsoka's face. "But if you'd prefer to leave it on, that's fine."

Riyo caught a hint of relief on Ahsoka's face.

That was another thing that confused Riyo. Ahsoka came to her for sex, yet she would never undress. Did she have something to hide, like an embarrassing tattoo or something? Ahsoka didn't seem like the type to do anything that reckless. Maybe she was just self conscious about her body - a lot of girls were, because of all the media representation on the 'perfect body type'. But Ahsoka was obviously extremely physically fit, so what did she have to be self conscious about?

Riyo requested that Ahsoka roll over. When she did, Riyo climbed over her and straddled her lower back.

Riyo carefully bought her hands to the bottom of Ahsoka's shirt and dipped her hands beneath it.

Her fingertips skimmed over the soft and warm skin, earning a very quiet sigh from Ahsoka.

Riyo didn't know why she felt the urge to touch Ahsoka's skin like that.

The Pantoran removed her hands and placed them on Ahsoka's upper back, just above her shoulder blades.

Slowly, she worked her thumbs over Ahsoka's back, feeling the tight knots through Ahsoka's shirt.

Riyo applied pressure and worked her thumbs and fingers over the knots, doing her best to work them out.

"You weren't kidding when you said you'd been skipping the sports massages." Riyo said, earning a light, breathy chuckle from the girl beneath her.

Riyo continued the massage for the next half an hour, working out the knots with knuckles when her fingers started to ache.

She could feel a lot of tension near Ahsoka's neck and shoulders, so she made sure to pay particular attention to those areas.

Ahsoka was mostly silent during the massage, apart from releasing small hisses of pain when Riyo reached a particularly awkward knot. She had clearly enjoyed it though, as when she wasn't wincing, she was breathing heavy and sighing contently. It reminded Riyo of the times they were intimate, when Riyo bought her a different kind of pleasure.

When Riyo was done working out the knots she removed herself and lay down beside Ahsoka, who was lay with her arms crossed beneath her head, her eyes closed.

"Are you feeling better now?" Riyo asked smugly, knowing that she'd satisfied her.

Ahsoka nodded her head, her eyes still shut. "You have magical hands, you know." She said quietly, almost sounding like she was half asleep.

Riyo smiled, taking in the sight of a relaxed Ahsoka - something she hadn't really seen before. It was good to see her like this.

"Well it is my job to please."

Ahsoka opened her eyes. "Thank you. I feel a lot better now. I can actually relax now, the tension has mostly gone."

"Mostly?" Riyo questioned. She was sure that she'd gotten all of the knots out that had been bothering the Togruta.

Ahsoka smiled sheepishly again and half hid her face in her arm. "I'm still feeling a little worked up."

Riyo knew what she meant. She shuffled a little closer to the Togruta and dipped her fingers under Ahsoka's shirt, ghosting her fingers over the small of her back, earning a shiver from her. "I can fix that for you." She whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 1: So Ahsoka's getting more comfortable with Riyo now, and Riyo's warming up to Ahsoka as well. Cute space lesbians.
> 
> A/N 2: Jesus, Ahsoka. You're supposed to be giving this poor girl some lessons in self defence, not getting a massage and then getting off. Pull yourself together!
> 
> A/N 3: I needed a scene where Ahsoka allows Riyo to touch her, so she can open up a little more to Riyo. So I thought, is there anything better that a good massage? The answer is no.
> 
> A/N 3: Please leave a comment and any suggestions or things you want included in the story! Thanks again, space nerds.


	5. Chapter 5

**Quick Warning. Mentions of attempted and referenced sexual assault in this chapter. If you feel uncomfortable with this content please don't read this chapter, I don't want anyone getting upset or anything. It is not at all graphic, though. Thanks guys.**

"Okay so the first lesson in self defence that everyone should know is; prevention." Ahsoka said, sat cross legged opposite Riyo on the floor. "If someone is starting to advance on you or they start to make you feel uncomfortable, try to ease their anger and prevent them from attacking you. Diffuse the situation. Be aware of your surroundings, for example, are there others around who you could call for help?"

Riyo scratched her head as she tried to focus on Ahsoka's advice.

It was so strange; not even ten minutes ago, Riyo had Ahsoka shaking beneath her fingers, clutching the sheets and gasping for breath; now here they were sat on the floor discussing what to do should Riyo be attacked.

"Second rule," Ahsoka continued, "If violence can't be avoided, you need to rowdy. Bring attention to yourself by yelling, 'back off' or 'leave me alone' are always good ones to use. By bringing attention to yourself, people will see what's going on. If the attacker feels like they are being watched, they will usually back off."

"Okay." Riyo nodded, indicating that she was listening and taking in the information.

"The most effective body parts to strike are quite obvious. You want to hit one or more of these areas before things escalate. The quicker you do this, the more chance you have of escaping. You want to aim for: the knees, face, eyes, nose, groin, neck and knees. These will inflict a lot of pain and could immobilise them temporarily."

"You sure do know a lot about this kind of stuff. Have you ever had to use it?" Riyo asked, resting her elbow on her leg and leaning her head onto her hand.

Ahsoka nodded, "A few times. This is why you need to know this stuff, it could save your life."

Riyo nodded. "Carry on. I can't miss out on all of this juicy information."

Ahsoka rolled her eyes playfully, "Using your hands and legs are good. But if you use your head, elbows and knees, it can lessen your chances of injuring yourself. Those parts of your body are really hard and can inflict pain on others, while leaving you without a bruise. Using everyday objects can be effective, too; like keys or hairspray. Now I know you're quite small, so you're probably thinking 'how could I protect myself from a six foot six brute'. But that doesn't matter. If you use your body weight while attacking, it makes a huge difference. When targeting those sensitive points, using your body weight can inflict extra damage, therefore increasing your chances of escaping."

Suddenly, a beeping sound came from Ahsoka's cloak, which was slung over a chair in the corner of the room.

Ahsoka quickly stood up and pulled it out of the pocket.

She sighed and pulled the cloak over her head. "I'm sorry, Riyo. That'll be work calling me in. I lost track of time."

Riyo stood up too, feeling slightly disheartened that Ahsoka was leaving. "Work is calling you at 5am?"

Ahsoka quickly placed a handful of credits on the bed. "A mechanics job is never finished, Riyo. I, uh, usually start pretty early but it's been busy."

Huh, so Ahsoka was a mechanic, Riyo mused. She didn't bother to check the amount of the credits, knowing that Ahsoka wouldn't underpay her, unlike half of the sleezeballs who she worked with.

"I'll teach you the rest next time, okay?"

Riyo nodded, "Sure. I look forward to it."

Before Ahsoka stepped out of the door she turned around, "Thank you for massage and all that. I feel much better, thanks to those magic hands." Ahsoka winked at her, taking Riyo by surprise.

Riyo shook her head as a laugh escaped her.

Ahsoka really was something else.

...

The other women in the brothel bustled around her. The hot water had stopped working and everyone was freaking out about it. It was standard procedure for all the women to wash after being with a client. They were now having to use freezing cold water to clean themselves - Riyo feared that they would get ill.

She'd had a pretty average couple of weeks. She'd slept with a few men and earned enough to cover her rent for the month, which eased her worry.

She was missing Ahsoka's company, however. Ahsoka hadn't stopped by in a fortnight.

That didn't mean that she hadn't been thinking about her, however. She was still such a mystery to Riyo - and she couldn't put together the pieces that made Ahsoka.

Riyo lifted her head when the main door opened. She heard the familiar sound of boots clapping onto the floor.

Her heart immediately sunk when the smell of alcohol and cigarettes filled her nose, consuming her senses.

In stepped the same man who had violated and humiliated her two weeks ago.

Riyo avoided his eyes as he stumbled over to the counter. Riyo could practically feel the fear radiating off of the other girl's.

Suddenly remembering what to do, she shoved her hand into her pocket and pressed the button on the commlink Ahsoka had given her.

She was scared. She didn't want to feel his rough hands groping her again, or the uncomfortable scratch from his stubble on her face. She remembered his tight grip on her hips, the strong hand coiling around her neck as he violently groped her breasts.

She recalled him throwing her onto the bed and unbuckling his belt, forcing himself on top of her.

She was pulled from her frantic thoughts when he approached her, his sluggish steps stopping right in front of her. "Hello, gorgeous." He slurred, the stench of him almost making Riyo gag.

Riyo cowered back slightly in fear, too terrified to say anything.

"What's 'ta matter? You 'av a job to do so les get to it!" He practically yelled in her face, saliva from his mouth flying everywhere.

Riyo clenched the side of sofa to stop her hands from trembling. She wanted to yell at him, to tell him to leave her and all the women here alone, but she was so paralysed from the terror and fear rushing through her, she couldn't formulate a sentence.

She shakily stood up from the couch, aware that all eyes were on her and the drunken mess in front of her.

"Oi! Are 'ya even listening t' me?! You pathetic whore, you deserve everthin' ya' get!" He screamed in her face, grabbing her shoulder and dragging her towards one of the rooms.

All of the things Ahsoka had taught her about self defence had left her mind. She couldn't remember anything, too distressed and scared to think about anything apart from what this man was going to do to her.

Riyo tried to scurry away, but his grip was too strong. The man used his free hand to yank Riyo by her hair.

Tears were streaming down her face now. She was going to have endure the horrible torture again.

"I'm going to 'ave my wicked way with you, an' you're going t' like it, you disgusting slut." He whispered into her ear, sending a new wave of crippling fear through her.

"Leave her alone!" Came a infuriated voice.

Just then Ahsoka appeared behind the man, grabbing a fistful of his shirt, right on the collar, yanking him backwards roughly, away from Riyo.

He stumbled a little but caught himself, fury blazing in his eyes. "Who the hell do ya' think you are!"

Ahsoka didn't reply. In a flash, she raised her arm and punched the man straight in the face, sending him tumbling to the ground in a split second.

"Ahsoka!" Riyo ran over to her and wrapped her arms around her, tears still flowing. If she weren't so traumatised, she would have been shocked by Ahsoka's display of pure strength. It couldn't have been easy to knock the large man down in a single punch.

Ahsoka didn't reply, her eyes still focussed on the man.

He was picking himself up from the ground, his fists clenched and ready to strike. Riyo shrunk back in fear when she saw the look in his eyes.

Riyo dived to the side when the man charged at Ahsoka.

The Togruta ducked his strike and slammed her left fist into the side of his face, then her right into his sternum.

It all happened so fast, and before Riyo could register what was happening, the man dropped to his knees, his hands on his chest, gasping for breath.

Riyo glanced at Ahsoka, who was reaching into her pocket.

Riyo's eyes widened in shock when Ahsoka pulled out a pair of handcuffs.

As Ahsoka yanked back the man's arms and clipped the handcuffs on, she began to speak, "I am arresting you on suspicion of assault and attempted sexual assault. You do not have to anything; but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something which you later rely on in the galactic court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence."

The drunken man tried to shake Ahsoka off him, failing miserably as Ahsoka yanked on his cuffs. "You can't do this t' me! They can't charge me, there's no evidence!"

Ahsoka pulled on his cuffs again, reminding him who was in charge of the situation. "Are you sure about that?" She pointed up to the small flashing security camera that was in the top corner of the room.

The man's eyes followed the direction Ahsoka was pointing in, and his face fell, defeated.

Riyo was stunned to silence. Was Ahsoka a public servant? Was she with the galactic police?

Surely not. But how else would she have the power to arrest someone? Unless she was a...

Ahsoka raised her commlink to her face, "This is Jedi Knight Ahsoka Tano. I need two police officers at the building 775 on level 2983. I have a man here who just assaulted and attempted to sexually assault a woman."

Riyo didn't hear whatever was said next.

She was in a state of shock. Ahsoka was... a Jedi? How could that be? She was certain that Jedi were not allowed relationships, emotional or physical. So why had Ahsoka come to her in the first place?

The Coruscant Security Force showed up within the next five minutes and Ahsoka handed over the man to the police. She quickly discussed making statements the next day, when everything had calmed down and the residents had gotten over the initial shock. The police took the man away after sending some information over to Ahsoka's datapad.

"Riyo, I need you to come with me." She said in an authoritative tone.

Riyo followed her silently, still shocked and confused.

Ahsoka shut the door behind them as Riyo stood near the bed.

Ahsoka immediately stepped towards her ran her hand over Riyo's cheek. "Are you okay? Are you hurt? Did he do anything to you before I got there?" She said urgently, her eyes running over Riyo's tear streaked face.

Riyo pushed Ahsoka back, making her stumble a little. "You're a Jedi." She stated.

Ahsoka sighed, recovering from her slight stumble. "Yeah. I'm a Jedi."

Anger flared up in Riyo, for reasons she couldn't explain. "You're a kriffin' Jedi and you didn't think to tell me?"

Ahsoka bit the inside of her cheek, "I didn't think it was important."

Riyo pointed an accusing finger at her, her voice raising, "You didn't think it was important?! Is that some kind of joke?"

Ahsoka shook her head, making sure to keep her voice low so she didn't aggravate Riyo more, "Of course not. It's just not something you go around telling people, I guess."

Riyo couldn't help the words that were spilling out of her mouth, she was blinded with anger. "You're a Jedi, you're supposed to be fighting a war! Not coming down to the lower levels of Coruscant to visit prostitutes. What the hell is wrong with you?"

Ahsoka seemed hurt by her words and took a few seconds to reply. "Riyo... I didn't mean to upset you. I didn't tell you that I was a Jedi because I was scared of what your reaction might be. There are so many people who hate the Jedi. I was worried you wouldn't want to speak to me if you knew."

Riyo scoffed, "Worried what I'd think? More like you were worried that you wouldn't be able to get off. That's the only thing on your mind when you visit brothels, isn't it? To have some fun and blow off some steam right?"

"Riyo," Ahsoka almost pleaded, "It's not like that at all. I want to help you."

Riyo had tears in her eyes again, "Give it a rest, Ahsoka." She said, a sob escaping her lips.

Ahsoka wrapped her arms around the crying girl and held her as the tears started to flow freely, soaking Ahsoka's cloak.

"Riyo, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." Ahsoka whispered in her ear. "I'm sorry."

Riyo thrashed her arms around, striking Ahsoka several times in the back. "What the hell is wrong with you!" She cried into Ahsoka's shoulder between strikes, "You only show emotion when I'm upset. You don't even touch me usually. You feel nothing!"

Ahsoka stood there and took the abuse from the smaller girl. She didn't know what else to do.

Riyo was now having a full breakdown. Her arms flopped to her sides and she cried even harder into Ahsoka's soaked shoulder.

Ahsoka just hugged her tighter, not knowing what to do or what to say.

How did she manage to get herself into these situations?

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 1: Chapter five, done and dusted my friends.
> 
> A/N 2: I wasn't actually going to have Riyo break down like that. Instead she was supposed to ask all of these questions about Ahsoka being a Jedi but I thought, eh, you can't beat a good emotional breakdown now can you?
> 
> A/N 3: Hope you enjoyed! Please please please leave a comment, like, kudos whatever! I really appreciate it! Thanks a lot!


	6. Chapter 6

Ahsoka's POV

Ahsoka held the smaller girl tighter to her chest, offering a gentle squeeze.

Riyo bought her arms up and wrapped them around Ahsoka's waist tightly, squeezing hard.

"Hey." Ahsoka said softly into her ear, "Please stop crying. Riyo, please. I hate seeing you like this."

Riyo could hear the emotion that Ahsoka rarely expressed in her voice. It made her want to stop crying, but her mind betrayed her eyes as more tears leaked from her swollen eyes.

Ahsoka stroked her hair gently one with hand, the other still tightly wrapped her. What else could she do? Juggle something? Do a headstand?

It felt like hours before Riyo's tears finally calmed. When Riyo removed her face from Ahsoka's soaked shoulder, she bought up her hands to wipe at her eyes.

Ahsoka hesitantly took Riyo's hand and lay her down on the bed.

"I'm sorry, Riyo." Ahsoka said one final time, using the Force to pull her into sleep, one that she doubted would be peaceful.

Ahsoka quietly placed a datapad on the beside table. It had information about where to go to make a statement to the authorities the following day. And the end, she added a small note, wording, "I know you're mad at me but I'll stop by soon to make sure you're okay. The commlink I gave you is linked to my regular comm, please call if you need anything (it's the green button). I'm sorry."

She slipped out of the room, passing by the receptionist woman and telling her that Riyo was asleep, and that she shouldn't be working right now.

"Here." Ahsoka handed the woman some credits. "Please wake Riyo up in a few hours. Tell her to use this to get a taxi home, I don't want her walking alone at this time."

The woman nodded and put the money in one of the drawers, "Thank you, Master Jedi. You're very kind. Thank you for getting that monster out of here, none of us could have ever been as brave as you were."

"Don't worry about it." Ahsoka brushed her off, "It's my job." She paused for a moment before crouching down at the desk, her voice low. "Would you mind doing me a favour?"

"Of course not." She replied instantly.

"I don't think it'll come up when you make your statement tomorrow, but if it does, please don't mention that I've been here before."

"You have my word, Master Jedi." She swore, nodding understanding.

"Thank you."

When Ahsoka got back to her room at the temple, it was almost 4:30am.

Ahsoka crashed down onto her sleeping mat and just lay there, her body motionless while her mind raged.

She didn't know why she kept going back there. She didn't know what drew her to Riyo so much.

The first time had just been for the sex. The war was so terrible, she was constantly stressed about the next time she would be in the front lines, fighting for a failing economy. She just needed to blow off some steam, needed to be around someone who didn't understand the war.

She wanted to feel something that wasn't stress, despair, hurt.

And Riyo was just... Riyo. Kind, damaged, considerate, all at the same time.

She hadn't meant to upset Riyo. She knew she shouldn't have lied; she knew that. But she really enjoyed spending time with her, it wasn't just about getting some anymore.

Ahsoka had no idea what she was feeling. She'd never felt like this before; but she knew it was against everything she stood for.

But then again, she wasn't fighting for the Jedi anymore. She didn't fight for the Republic. She fought for the innocent people that suffered the backlash from the war. The people who lost their homes, their money, their loved ones.

Ahsoka pressed her palms into her eyes. She didn't go a day without thinking of the Jedi Order's betrayal.

Sometimes she regretted coming back. She could live a normal life, get a real job and meet new people.

She had left. But then Mandalore happened, the Jedi needed her. More importantly, Mandolore needed her. After the battle, and defeating Maul, she decided to come back, because the war was so terrible, so severe. She still felt the duty to help those in need - innocent people who needed her help.

That's the only reason she had come back. She couldn't abandon those people who needed her.

Maybe that's why she enjoyed Riyo's company so much. She didn't have ties to the Army or the Jedi. Riyo could relieve her of her physical tension and she also relieved her of the agonising thoughts that filled her head daily.

Ahsoka considered whether she should actually visit Riyo today. She assumed that the blue skinned woman was still incredibly mad at her.

Everything was such a mess at the moment. She'd managed to ruin her relationship with the only person who eased her mind, the only person she felt a different connection with.

...

Ahsoka hadn't slept at all that night.

When it reached 11pm the next night, after a long day thinking, training hard and running on no sleep, Ahsoka decided to check up on Riyo.

When she eventually reached her apartment, after getting lost for over an hour, she stood outside Riyo's apartment door, scared to knock.

She'd been stood there for over ten minutes before she worked up the courage to knock. Just before her fist hit the door, it slipped open.

Startled, Ahsoka yanked her arm down in half a second. Force, why did she make such a fool of herself in these kind of situations. She was such an embarrassing idiot when it came to interacting with people off the battlefield.

Riyo looked her up and down, as if assessing her. It made Ahsoka feel a little self conscious and uncomfortable.

"What are you doing here, Ahsoka?" She asked tiredly, as if she had no effort.

Ahsoka glanced over her quickly, the emotionless tone of Riyo's voice concerning her.

Riyo was wearing a huge over sized t shit, baggy shorts and white ankle socks. Her eyes were puffy and her hair was a mess, like she hadn't brushed it.

Ahsoka bit the inside of her cheek, "I just wanted to see how you were doing. I've been worried about you."

Ahsoka hated voicing her feelings, it all felt so foreign to her. As a Jedi, informing others about her feelings could raise concern. Even if she didn't feel like a Jedi, she still was one, and these were values she'd been bought up on since she was a toddler.

"You Jedi are too selfless for your own good." Riyo said sharply, reaching to press the close button on the panel next to the door. She pressed it and began to turn away.

"Hey!" Ahsoka thrust her hand into the door. It slammed against her forearm, trapping her between the door and the frame. She'd be lying if she said that it didn't hurt like a bitch.

Ahsoka mentally kicked herself. Kriffin' idiot.

Ahsoka saw Riyo appear in the gap between the door and its frame, being painfully held open by her arm.

Riyo glared her through the gap, "Well that was stupid."

Ahsoka tried her best to smile, though it came out rather crooked, "I need to make sure you're okay." She stated gently.

"I'm fine." Riyo said in a clipped tone, "Now can you leave? I'm trying to get some sleep."

Ahsoka clenched her jaw and sighed deeply. That's it, release the emotions into the force. Huh, like that ever worked. "Riyo, please. I know you're mad at me. Just let me explain, I'll answer all your questions. And if you want me to leave after that, I will, and I'll never speak to you again, if that's what you want."

Riyo glared at her - more like stared right into her soul - for a few seconds. "Fine."

The door then opened, like magic. Ahsoka cradled her arm, which had already started to bruise. It probably would've been a better idea to come in her Jedi attire, with her elbow length gloves - they probably would've softened the blow a bit.

Ahsoka stepped in and took in her surroundings. A large couch, big enough to fit at least three people, was against the opposite wall. An average sized holotv in the corner, a small coffee table in the middle. It was cozy, much nicer than Ahsoka's room in the temple, which consisted of a roll mat to sleep on and a small cabinet.

Riyo slumped into the corner of the couch, her arms folded moodily over her chest. She stared at Ahsoka for a moment before speaking, "Well, are you gonna sit down or what?"

Ahsoka slowly sat down on the opposite side of the couch, resting her hands awkwardly in her lap. "So... where should I start?" She attempted to smile.

Riyo scowled at her, "How about the part where you lied to me about who you were."

Ahsoka clicked her tongue. "Ah, that would probably be a good place to start." She turned slightly so she could face Riyo. "Well... it's not that I meant to lie to you. Technically, I didn't. I just bent the truth." She looked over sheepishly at the smaller girl.

She was glaring at her again, her eyes burning into Ahsoka so hard that she was worried she would burst into flames.

Ahsoka shrunk back a little and raised her hands innocently, "Okay, okay, so I lied to you. Look Riyo, I was just scared about your reaction. We started to get closer and closer and I just didn't want you to hate me. With the war going on, people are starting to resent the Jedi. I just didn't want you to be one of those people."

Riyo wrinkled her nose in disgust at her, "Bit of a pathetic excuse if you ask me. How do I know that you weren't just worried that you wouldn't be able to get a good shag?"

Ahsoka made a face at Riyo's uncharacteristic remark. "It's not like that at all, Riyo. I... I care about you. And I shouldn't. I'm a Jedi, I'm not even allowed to think about these kinds of things. But I do... I think about you. I wonder what you're up to, how you're feeling, whether you get home safe every night."

Riyo didn't say anything. She still had that stubborn look on her face, but it had lessened slightly, much to Ahsoka's relief.

Ahsoka decided to carry on. "It's not just me being scared about what you think of Jedi. It's me being scared of what you think of me." Ahsoka took a deep, shaky breath, "I've done terrible things, Riyo. I didn't want you to know, because it could change how you think about me. I've killed people. I've let innocent people die under my command. I've made decisions that have cost people their lives. I'm an awful person."

"Ahsoka... it hasn't changed how I feel about you. You're still an idiot, but it's not changed how I think about you." Riyo said softly, finally pushing through the stubborn demeanour she'd been in.

Ahsoka continued, her voice weakening, "The reason why I came to the brothel that night was because everything is getting on top of me. I'd had a really tough mission, a lot of people died, and I didn't even feel anything; I was numb. I feel as if I'm carrying the weight of the universe on my shoulders, and no matter what I do, it's never good enough. I just wanted to feel something. And you made me feel something - and it wasn't just the sex. That night, you reminded me that I'm still just one person, and I can't change everything. You lifted that weight off of my shoulders in the time I spent with you. So I kept coming back to you. You relieved that physical tension from me, but more importantly, you banished my emotional turmoil away, even if it was only for a little while. You reminded me that I was still Ahsoka Tano, still just a person, a person who can't do everything. I was able to accept that, just for a short while."

Ahsoka didn't even realise that tears were dripping down her face. She'd grown so used to feeling this way, so damaged by the war, that she hardly realised how badly it had been affecting her.

Riyo's silence saddened Ahsoka, confirming her fears; Riyo still hated her.

Ahsoka's eyes were downcast, her voice low, close to breaking, "I guess I'll just leave you to it. I'm sorry; for everything."

Silently, Ahsoka rose from the couch. As she was about to push the panel button that operated the door, Riyo cried out.

"Ahsoka, wait!"

The Togruta slowly turned around, her blurry vision settling on Riyo, who was also stood up from the couch. She waited for Riyo to say something.

"I'm sorry, too." She muttered, refusing to make eye contact with Ahsoka. "I shouldn't have reacted the way that I did. You saved me from that horrible man and all I did was blame you. Force, I even hit you - multiple times."

Ahsoka wiped her eyes, the unfamiliar feeling of the tears irritating her face. She sniffed, "It's understandable." She offered a watery smile.

"I was just hurt that you didn't tell me. But I understand now... because I feel it too." She paused for a moment, as if collecting herself and preparing herself for what she was going to say. "Even if you are just one of my clients, I feel it too. I didn't care if you were just coming over for the sex. I enjoyed spending time with you. You were caring, considerate and kind. You reminded me that not everyone is evil in this world. You showed me compassion and kindness, like no one else ever had. You made me feel safe and cared about. And I have no idea how to feel about that, or how to feel about you." Riyo looked up at her finally, a grin plastered on her puffy face, "It still doesn't change the fact that you're a complete idiot, though. What kind of person willingly traps their hand in a door?"

Ahsoka let out a breathy chuckle, "So does that mean you forgive me then?" She hoped so. She really, really hoped so.

"Maybe." She said stubbornly, but her tone didn't match the bright, playful sparkle in her eyes.

Ahsoka grinned madly, "I'll make it up to, I promise."

"You better do, Ahsoka Tano."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N 1: Once again, I have finished this chapter running on less than four hours of sleep. Oh, the joys of working full time and working mornings. I think I deserve some kind of endurance award.
> 
> A/N 2: I was originally going to draw out their argument over the space of a few weeks but, even though both Riyo and Ahsoka are extremely out of character in this story, I still wanted to keep Ahsoka's humour intact and also Riyo's caring personality.
> 
> A/N 3: Could there have been a kiss at the end of this chapter? Maybe. But I didn't make it happen.
> 
> A/N 4: I decided to still follow SWTCW canon and still have Ahsoka being betrayed by Barriss and the Jedi Order. It explains her quietness and distrustful nature a little more. I'll touch on it more in future chapters.
> 
> A/N 5: As usual, thanks again readers! Until next time, geeks.


	7. Chapter 7

Ahsoka was due to meet Riyo in a few hours. She had planned to pick up some take out, so they could talk and eat while watching a movie Riyo had suggested - some new rom com. 

Unfortunately, her plans had to be cancelled. As she was walking to the cantina to grab a bottle of water, her comm started to beep. She raised it to her mouth, "Tano." 

"Ahsoka, a mission just came up." Anakin's voice crackled through the comm, "Intelligence teams have located another droids factory on Geonosis. We fly in forty five minutes. You better be ready in the cockpit!" 

"Don't worry about it, Anakin. I'll be there." 

Ahsoka quickly snagged a bottle of water and rushed back to her quarters, which was just a few turns away from Anakin's. 

After gathering everything that she needed, slinging on her cloak, she sent a quick voice message to Riyo, "Hey, Riyo. I have to cancel tonight. I'm being shipped out to Geonosis for an important mission. I'll let you know when I'm back. I'm sorry, but I'm sure you'll enjoy the movie without me! I’ll make it up to you.” 

She arrived at the cockpit with ten minutes to spare. 

Anakin was waiting for her. "You seem chirpy today." He observed. 

Ahsoka plastered on a smile, though it wasn't as fake as it usually was, "Oh, Anakin. How kind of you to point out. I guess I'm feeling ecstatic about returning to that dustball of a planet." 

Anakin raised his hands, "Hey, you're just as excited as I am about this mission." He paused for a moment, sniffing the air. 

Ahsoka raised a brow, "Are you alright there?" 

Anakin frowned, "I can smell... perfume?" 

Ahsoka laughed awkwardly, trying to think of a comeback while mentally kicking herself. Riyo had returned her cloak and she'd completely forgotten to wash it when she got back to the temple last night.

Ahsoka scratched her back lekku, "It must be the new washing powder the laundry droids are using! I heard that the old one was giving some of the younglings rashes." Ahsoka said quickly, hoping the lie was good enough to fool Anakin, who, fortunately, could be really gullible at times. 

"Hm," he shrugged, "Maybe you're right. I thought my robes smelt a little different when I got them back." 

"Haha, yeah." Ahsoka said quickly. "Come on, we need to get going." 

.......... 

FIVE DAYS LATER... 

"Ouch! Can you stop prodding me with that kriffin' needle!" Ahsoka snapped angrily, gritting her teeth as she covered her thigh with her hand. 

The medical droid looked blankly at her, "But, Master Tano, I must remove the grit and dirt from your wound." 

Ahsoka rolled her eyes at the sound of its monotone drone, "I. Don't. Care. Can you not do it a little more gently?!" She snarled through ground teeth. 

"Master Tano, I must do this in order to prevent infection. Please, lie still." 

Ahsoka grumbled a few curse words under her breath and crossed her arms over her chest. "Just get on with it then." She huffed, wincing as the droid picked out shrapnel and grit from the gaping gash in her leg. 

The whole thing, including the extraction of foreign objects and the cleaning process, had taken a little over and hour. 

She'd had to have 288 stitches to close the wound. When the droid finished stitching her up, it placed a large bacta patch over it, along with a stark white bandage. 

"Master Tano, you must change the dressing every twelve hours. This pack contains enough supplies to last you for the next week. You will also need walking support for at least a week, so we will provide you with crutches. If you need any assistance, return to medical bay and we will help in any way we can." 

Ahsoka glared at the droid, "Why are you telling me this now? We haven't even finished yet! You still need to patch up my face!" Ahsoka said, angrily pointing towards her face. She had cut on her cheek, as well as minor burns on her nose, forehead and chin. They were in no way severe, but they were bad enough to make it look like she had a serious case of patchy sunburn. What would Riyo think when she saw her? Ahsoka could already see her laughing at her red, shining face. 

There she goes again, thinking about that damn Pantoran. 

"I am sorry, Master Tano. It is only standard protocol to inform you of supplies after each injury is treated." The droid replied, prodding her face again with the needle. 

It was going to be a long day. 

............

RIYO'S POV 

Riyo was excited. Ahsoka was coming round to her apartment today, and to make things better, it was her day off. 

She glanced at the time, which read 14:31. Ahsoka had mentioned she would probably be arriving at her apartment between 3 and 4. 

Riyo had made an effort to clean up and make things tidy, since she suspected that Ahsoka would probably want to relax after her mission. 

Riyo wondered what Ahsoka had been up to. When Ahsoka had called to tell her she was coming over, she had seemed happy, so Riyo assumed that the mission, whatever it had been, went well. 

Riyo had seen Ahsoka in a new light, after their conversation a few nights ago. She now understood the hardness in Ahsoka's demeanour, why she didn't like to talk much. 

Riyo found it impossible to believe that she was a bad person, however. Ahsoka didn't kill innocents - she killed monsters and fought for the Republic. That didn't make her a bad person, it made her a hero - someone who cared about the wellbeing of others.

A knock sounded on the door. 

Riyo rushed to the mirror to check her appearance. She quickly adjusted her hair and then made her way over to the door. 

The door slid open and Riyo gasped at the state of Ahsoka. 

The Togruta was stood on one leg, on crutches. Bandages covered the entirety of her thigh and she had a few plasters on her face. If she weren't so worried about the other girl, she would have laughed at Ahsoka's red face and wrinkled eyes. 

"So, uh, can I come in?" Ahsoka asked sheepishly, leaning her weight on her uninjured leg. 

"Yeah, sure. Make yourself at home." She stepped aside, giving Ahsoka room to hobble past.

Ahsoka collapsed onto the couch, letting out a long sigh, "That feels so much better." 

Riyo shook her head, suppressing a laugh, and sat down beside her, their legs brushing against each other slightly. Her worry had disappeared almost as soon as it came. Ahsoka was fine. 

"What happened to you? You look like you've been sat in the sun for far too long." 

Ahsoka rolled her eyes and nudged her playfully, "Ha ha, very funny. To cut a long story short, we destroyed a droids factory. The bombs went of early and flung a load of shrapnel into my leg and burnt my face. It's all good though, the mission was a complete success. Only seven casualties, including myself." She smiled proudly, the burnt skin around her eyes crinkling. “It was a much better experience than the last time I was there.” 

"It sounds like something out of an action movie." Riyo commented, glancing down at Ahsoka bandaged leg. 

"Hah." Ahsoka laughed humourlessly, "The past five years have been like a kriffin' action movie. The last time I was on that planet I blew myself up, got trapped underground, and then was stuck on a ship with people infected by brain worms.” 

"You know, you shouldn't think of the negatives all the time. I know you do, and you can't help that, but it would be more healthy for you to think about the positives." Riyo said softly, running a gentle hand over the bandages that coiled around Ahsoka's thigh. 

"I'll try if it makes you happy." Ahsoka said, forcing a smile on her face. 

Riyo returned the smile. Ahsoka's smile was infectious, it always made Riyo cheerful. Maybe it affected her so much because when they'd first met, Ahsoka didn't smile. 

"Yes. That would make me very happy. Shall we flick the Holotv on?" Riyo suggested, about to stand to grab the remote. 

"Hey," Ahsoka raised a hand, putting on her best television presenter voice, "Sit back, chill out. I got this." 

Riyo raised a brow in confusion but relaxed back into the soft cushions on the sofa. 

She observed Ahsoka as the girl raised her hand, her palm outstretched. 

Riyo looked around the room, noticing that the holotv remote was slowly floating towards them. 

She watched in awe as it floated closer, eventually dropping into her lap.

"Now that was pretty cool." Riyo said, picking up the remote and flicking on the holotv. 

Nothing seemed interesting, as if was only 3:45pm. The good shows didn't usually start until 7pm. 

She eventually settled on channel 007, Galactic News 24/7. 

They watched and spoke little of the content being shown in front of them. 

Ahsoka started to laugh when the title of the next news story came up, named "Man gets trapped in a washing machine while looking for his lost Loth-Cat". 

Ahsoka shook her head in amusement, "How could he even fit in there?" 

"Don't ask me!" Riyo replied, laughing as footage was shown of the Rodian man being pulled from the spinning contraption. 

They both watched and listened intently as the next news story started. The screen showed a news anchor sitting with a datapad in front of him. "Next up we have a slightly more serious story. Today Jedi Knights Anakin Skywalker and Ahsoka Tano returned from combat in Geonosis." 

"Oh for crying out loud." Ahsoka rolled her eyes and reached over to grab the remote from Riyo. 

Riyo snatched it away from her, "Hey, you're on TV! I wanna see this!" 

"Riyo!" Ahsoka complained. 

Riyo just smirked and tucked the remote under her arm, out of Ahsoka's reach. She then focussed on the screen.

The anchor continued, "Fearless partners in crime, these two young Knights, with the help of their brave Clone Army, took down a giant droids factory. Now, this definitely isn't the first we've heard about these two valiant warriors, is it Veensk?" The anchor turned to face another human, dressed in a blue suit with a bright red tie.

"It sure isn't, Kash. And it definitely won't be the last!" He replied enthusiastically. 

"Here's some footage we managed to snag of the two of them in combat." The news anchor, Kash, said. 

The screen flicked to a short video of an overhead shot of Anakin and Ahsoka, charging through the dusty battlefield, clones tailing close behind them. Their lightsabers were blazing, flashing around wildly, blocking blaster bullets. Ahsoka could be seen leaping into the air and landing on top of a super battle droid, her lightsaber plunged deep into its chest before it even had a chance to realise she was there. Anakin charged past her, swiping through ten battle droids in a matter of seconds. 

The clip ended and the two enthusiastic anchors were back on screen. "Wow, that sure is amazing. It's pretty amazing that we have super heroes like that fighting for the Republic." Said Kash. 

"It sure is! Luckily, the Jedi and their Clones managed to destroy the factory and get away safely. I have a feeling we'll be seeing more of these two soon!" 

Suddenly the holotv flicked off. 

Startled, Riyo glanced over at Ahsoka, who had the remote in her hand. 

"Hey! How did you do that?" She demanded, reaching for it. 

Ahsoka used the force to place it back onto the holotv stand. "You were too invested in the show to realise I used the Force to pull it from under your arm." 

Riyo folded her arms over her chest. "You're mean." 

"I don't like seeing myself on TV, okay." Ahsoka shrugged. 

"You're on tv a lot?" Riyo questioned, shuffling a little closer to Ahsoka. 

Ahsoka shrugged again, "From time to time. We Jedi can be pretty popular with the news. I've had my fair share of screen time. Let's just say it's not always pleasant." Ahsoka trailed off. 

"Oh, I see." Riyo thought it would be a good idea to change the conversation. "So who's that guy you were with?" 

Ahsoka lip curved into a slight smile, "Remember that older brother I talked about? Well that's him. He was my Master. He trained me and we fought in the war together as Master and Apprentice until I was knighted. He's a great man, one of the best Jedi there are. It was a privilege to be his student." 

Riyo noticed how happy Ahsoka looked while she talked about her former Master - she must really love him. 

"He sounds like a great guy. After all, he taught you everything you know, right?" 

"Almost everything." Ahsoka lifted her good leg and crossed it underneath her, "There are other Masters who've taught me valuable lessons. Master Obi-Wan, who was Anakin's old Master, is a great too. As well as Master Plo, who discovered me and bought me to the Jedi Temple." 

"You're close with those two as well?" 

Riyo noticed Ahsoka clenching her jaw. She'd learned that she did that when she was thinking hard about what to say. "Yeah. I used to be a lot closer to them, not so much anymore - what with the war and everything." She said a little too quickly for Riyo's liking. She decided not to press the issue however, knowing that Ahsoka didn't need any extra stress on her mind, especially while her body was so exhausted at the moment. 

Riyo found herself changing the conversation quite often when she was with Ahsoka. 

"Fancy watching that movie we were supposed to watch before you left for Geonosis?" Riyo asked, nudging Ahsoka's shoulder. 

"Sure."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Please drop a like or comment! Sorry for the wait on this one!


End file.
